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Monday, November 12, 2012

Butterick 5814: The Draped Wiggle Dress

Now that my coat is finished, I'm embarking on a new project: sewing up my other new Butterick pattern for myself! (It's Butterick 5814, and it's currently on sale for $3.99 online.) While I don't quite have the stamina to do an official sew-along for this one, I will be doing a series of detailed posts on its fit and construction. Like I did with the coat pattern, I wanted to start with a post on the design and its inspiration.

From the beginning (when I proposed this design to Butterick), I've always called this "The Draped Wiggle Dress." When I think of the classic wiggle dress, I usually think of something in wool, with sleeves and a higher neck. (Like the one in my book!) But then there's also the cocktail-style wiggle dress, in a fancier fabric. The genesis for this one was the green dress Joan wears in a Mad Men poster.

I loved the side drape on the dress she wears here. From this point, I started looking at other designer dresses from the era, particularly the work of Peggy Wood. It was her use of little raglan sleeves and bodice draping that inspired by own bodice design. Here's an example of a typical Peggy Wood bodice:

So now you can see how my own design was born; it's a mish-mash of a couple favorite styles.

It's certainly an interesting way to design. It's obviously nothing original, but that doesn't mean it doesn't have its challenges. While working on a pattern like this, things constantly need to be tweaked and re-imagined. Taking cues from photos is one thing, but then the process of putting those details into an original pattern can be quite time-consuming and difficult.

Tomorrow I'll write about the construction of this dress. While it looks drapey and soft, it has a serious inner structure, including steel boning, underlining, and a grosgrain waist stay!

Excellent. I am almost finished with my coat and am anxious to get started on the dress. I have to tell you how much fun it is to revisit all the wonderful 50 styles. I am 67 so it is second time around for me. Maggie

I think it could possibly work, but I would test out the drape of the dupioni. I was actually kind of surprised they listed taffeta as a possibly, because it would make the drape kind of stiff. I'm more inclined to suggest fabrics with a definite drape.

I am so excited to see that you'll be blogging about making this dress. I am using the bodice pattern in my wedding dress. My plan is to use a soft white cotton with some sheen, and once I've made a muslin, I may decide to tweak some things. Thank you.

I have a beautiful red dupioni that I want to use for this pattern. I'm thinking I will only make the bodice out of this pattern, and make a plainer skirt. I love both, but I think I'll try the details on different dresses. I can't wait to see the rest of the post, Gertie :)

Hi Gertie! I have both the coat and dress pattern, but I don't think I am ready for them yet.

I love the sultry sheath and jumper variation from your book! I was wondering if I could combine the bodice of the sheath dress with the skirt and drape from your Butterick pattern to create a dress similar to your beautiful pink rose dress. I love the piping on the pink dress. Could you possibly do a tutorial sometime in the future, when you are not as busy and tired?

Thank you for the great post! I am following it and cannot wait to read the rest. I have already bought the fabric which you recommend. I was really lucky to be able to choose from a wide variety that I found in designer fabric stores that were so accessible. I really recommend these shops! Looking forward to reading your next post!

Hi Gertie, I notice that Joan's dress seems to extend the drape all the way to the side seam, but your version (and the Peggy Wood) stops at a waist seam extended from the bust dart. Any reason for that structurally? Or is it just more flattering that way? I know, I'm pedantic but I notice these things and then I have to know why!